Lecture

Organ Chip Technology

Graph Chat

Chat with Graph Search

Ask any question about EPFL courses, lectures, exercises, research, news, etc. or try the example questions below.

DISCLAIMER: The Graph Chatbot is not programmed to provide explicit or categorical answers to your questions. Rather, it transforms your questions into API requests that are distributed across the various IT services officially administered by EPFL. Its purpose is solely to collect and recommend relevant references to content that you can explore to help you answer your questions.

Description

This lecture delves into the innovative field of organ chip technology, focusing on tissue engineering, micro-nanofabrication, and regenerative medicine applications. The instructor discusses the development of bio-inspired solutions for creating tissues and organs, emphasizing the importance of regulating the cellular environment. Various techniques such as microfluidics, microfibers, and bioprinting are explored to assemble small parts into functional tissues. The lecture also covers the integration of sensors into organ structures to monitor the physical and chemical environment, enabling real-time analysis and drug testing on organ-on-chip platforms.

Official source

Related concepts (9)

Microfluidics

Microfluidics refers to a system that manipulates a small amount of fluids ((10−9 to 10−18 liters) using small channels with sizes ten to hundreds micrometres. It is a multidisciplinary field that involves molecular analysis, biodefence, molecular biology, and microelectronics. It has practical applications in the design of systems that process low volumes of fluids to achieve multiplexing, automation, and high-throughput screening.

Droplet-based microfluidics

Droplet-based microfluidics manipulate discrete volumes of fluids in immiscible phases with low Reynolds number and laminar flow regimes. Interest in droplet-based microfluidics systems has been growing substantially in past decades. Microdroplets offer the feasibility of handling miniature volumes (μl to fl) of fluids conveniently, provide better mixing, encapsulation, sorting, sensing and are suitable for high throughput experiments.

Tissue engineering

Tissue engineering is a biomedical engineering discipline that uses a combination of cells, engineering, materials methods, and suitable biochemical and physicochemical factors to restore, maintain, improve, or replace different types of biological tissues. Tissue engineering often involves the use of cells placed on tissue scaffolds in the formation of new viable tissue for a medical purpose but is not limited to applications involving cells and tissue scaffolds.

Paper-based microfluidics

Paper-based microfluidics are microfluidic devices that consist of a series of hydrophilic cellulose or nitrocellulose fibers that transport fluid from an inlet through the porous medium to a desired outlet or region of the device, by means of capillary action. This technology builds on the conventional lateral flow test which is capable of detecting many infectious agents and chemical contaminants. The main advantage of this is that it is largely a passively controlled device unlike more complex microfluidic devices.

Regenerative medicine

Regenerative medicine deals with the "process of replacing, engineering or regenerating human or animal cells, tissues or organs to restore or establish normal function". This field holds the promise of engineering damaged tissues and organs by stimulating the body's own repair mechanisms to functionally heal previously irreparable tissues or organs. Regenerative medicine also includes the possibility of growing tissues and organs in the laboratory and implanting them when the body cannot heal itself.

Related lectures (20)

Biomechanics in Organ-on-Chip Systems

Explores biomechanics in organ-on-chip systems, covering advantages, fabrication methods, mechanical stimuli, and cell analysis techniques.

Organ-on-Chip: Biomedical Research and Cancer Modeling

Explores Organ-on-Chip technology for biomedical research and cancer modeling, showcasing its impact on drug development and disease understanding.

3D Printing Glass: Transparent Fused Silica

Explores the process of 3D printing transparent fused silica glass and its applications in optics, photonics, and biomedical engineering.

Biosensors Fundamentals: Lab-on-Chip Systems

Covers the fundamentals of biosensors and electronic biochips, including sensors performance and diagnostic tests.

Towards Clinical Translation of Bioprinting